Study: CBD From Marijuana May Affect Pain And Anxiety In Different Ways Than Previously Thought

An animal study has identified new pathways by which cannabidiol (CBD), the non-intoxicating compound in marijuana, affects the brain and nervous system without getting users high. If replicable in humans, the finding may strengthen the argument that a moderate dose of CBD could be a safer alternative to standard pain and anxiety meds for many patients.

While excitement continues to build around CBD's therapeutic potential, research showing the drug’s mechanism of action is still quite thin. Most attempts have focused on the endocannabinoid system, home of the CB1 cannabinoid receptors that marijuana’s psychoactive compound, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), binds to, resulting in the euphoria associated with the drug.

But the latest study shows that CBD acts on different receptors to deliver pain and anxiety relief without euphoria. Specifically, the findings point to interaction with serotonin (5 HT) receptors that are central to the management of anxiety, and vanilloid (TRPV1) receptors, a target for non-addictive forms of pain relief.

“Our findings elucidate the mechanism of action of CBD and show that it can be used as medicine without the dangerous side effects of THC,” said lead study author Dr. Gabriella Gobbi, Professor of Psychiatry at McGill University.

Another area that’s been shallow in CBD studies to-date is effective dosing. The latest research explored that issue as well, finding that just a moderate, body-weight-based dose of the drug over a week’s time was enough to deliver results.

“We found in animal models of chronic pain that low doses of CBD administered for seven days alleviate both pain and anxiety, two symptoms often associated in neuropathic or chronic pain,” added first author of the study Danilo De Gregorio, a post-doctoral fellow at McGill.

Since this was a study involving rats, a human-dosing equivalent isn’t clear, but the findings bring us a step closer to an answer.

More importantly, the results get us closer to understanding how CBD interacts with neurons in entirely different ways than its well-known partner compound, THC – sidestepping drawbacks of affecting the endocannabinoid system in the process. And if these findings replicate in humans, we’re also closer to harnessing CBD’s potential to deliver non-addictive pain and anxiety relief, offering patients on highly addictive opioids and benzodiazepine anti-anxiety meds another way to go.

None of these insights would be possible without research, which until recently was frozen in time. The times are changing, however, as shown by the US FDA approving the first drug comprised of CBD to treat severe forms of epilepsy earlier this year. While CBD derived from cannabis is still a Schedule 1 controlled substance under federal law in the US, hemp-derived CBD is more widely accessible (though its legality in terms of federal law is also murky).

The latest study was conducted in Quebec, where CBD recently became legal following passage of Canada’s Cannabis Act, which legalized recreational cannabis use nationwide.